At last, here is a book that brings together the early history of the colonial Port of Fremantle and its critical role in the development of the Colony of Western Australia. It takes the reader on a sprawling 'West side story' that spans over 300 years and emerges as a dramatic, integral part of the broader history of Australia.

It tells a story of daunting discovery of a continent, tragic shipwrecks, tense geopolitics, and one mans ambition to become a person of history. To this it adds a flawed experiment in colonisation, overwhelming challenges, muddled leadership and numerous, costly errors of judgement.

Although the ports Colony of Western Australia soon became derided as a land of struggling 'sand gropers' it was, first and foremost, an isolated maritime outpost, kept afloat by struggling seafarers who had to do battle with its dangerous oceans and shores. Unlike Sydney's magnificent Port Jackson, Fremantle became a hazardous port of necessity rather than merit. During its colonial period it witnessed at least I 68 serious maritime accidents, including 88 wrecks. Shipping and the rudimentary Fremantle Harbour Masters Service had to contend with pitiful efforts to provide man-made safe harbours and docks, while its leaders fought haplessly over a dozen sets of bamboozling official reports on the development of a safer harbour. Its politics were often peevish and divisive.

The dangers of the port became a substantial impediment to the growth of its colony, which fell well behind that of the settlements to the East. Not until the colony's final years was the quest to develop a safe harbour realised, just as it became a State in the new nation of Australia.

Along the way, the reader is treated to many fascinating anecdotes, asides, and provocative ideas that invite a deeper exploration of this narrative. Why did this often-quirky story unfold in the way it did? And how different might it have been
under somewhat altered circumstances?

This ground-breaking book should become a standard reference for all those interested in Australia's history and heritage.

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